BRYAN CLARY, MD, MBA

PCSA Member: 6 years

 

Biographical Information:

I am a native of Imperial, Calif., and graduated from UC San Diego in 1987 with a degree in bioengineering. I received a medical degree from UCSF in 1991 and completed a general surgery residency at Duke University (1998), followed by a surgical oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (2000).

In 2000, I joined Duke University's faculty, serving for 15 years in various roles, including director of the general surgery residency program and chief of hepatobiliary surgery. I maintained a busy clinical practice focused on complex biliary, liver and pancreatic surgeries and conducted translational research on new therapies for metastatic colorectal cancer. I am a nationally and internationally recognized thought leader in my field, with more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and service on the executive councils of the American Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association, the Society of Surgical Oncology, and the Society of Clinical Surgery, as well as on the editorial board of the Annals of Surgery. . My principal translational science contribution was in delineating a novel way to create RNA aptamers for therapeutics and biologic discovery using an in vivo apatamer selection process (SELEX) . Published in 2010 in Nature: Chemical Biology, this publication is consistently cited 15-25 times per year and led to NIH funding that facilitated the development additional aptamer candidates. Clinical research initiatives that I have led have altered the narrative and approaches to the timing of systemic and surgical therapies in patients with resectable hepatic colorectal metastases and have better informed the selection of patients for surgery.

I completed an executive MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business in 2014 with a vision to utilized these enhanced skills as a leader in an academic medical center and in leadership opportunities in surgical organizations relevant to my interests. I have served at the executive level in multiple surgical organizations including the Society of Surgical Oncology, Americas Hepatopancreatobiliary Association, Society of Clinical Surgery, Halsted Society, Western Surgical Association and Surgical Biology Club II.

In 2015, I was recruited to UC San Diego to serve as Chair of the Department of Surgery and surgeon-in-chief at UC San Diego Health. In this role, I lead a department of over 100 full-time faculty members who provide nationally recognized, state-of-the-art care, engage in practice-changing research, and train the next generation of surgeons and surgeon-scientists.

 

Leadership Roles within PCSA: 

During my time at Duke University I was a robust member/participant in the Southern Surgical Association through which I gained an appreciation for the scientific and cultural value of regional surgical associations for surgeons and the positive ways in which they can impact the care of patients regionally and nationally. In the transition to UC San Diego as Chair, I was committed to engaging robustly in the PCSA which is one of the premier regional associations in the country. As an academic chair, the networks established at the PCSA have been critical in placing and recruiting students, residents, fellows and faculty. Many of the presentations at the PCSA have informed initiatives and improvements at UCSD. In addition, the PCSA offers a friendly forum to interact with academic and community surgical leaders to share practices.

I have not held leadership or committee positions in the PCSA. I have attended every PCSA annual meeting since my arrival to UCSD (2016-present) initially as a guest and then as a member (2020-forward). I have served as a moderator of plenary and abstract sessions and presented original work at the meetings. I regularly participate in the PCSA social activities (golf and tennis).